Retro Remix: Round 13

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The only 10/10 for a console game. Period.

By Mark Bozon

While the world debates the intricacies of the Wii's controls and complains non-stop about the lack of technical advantage the system may have compared to its competitors, IGN would like to take the necessary time to focus on a huge advantage the Wii holds during this next generation of gaming. Nintendo has been a powerhouse of development for over 20 years, starting in the early '80s with the Famicom and NES, respectively. Nintendo has not only chosen to focus on intriguing gameplay this time around, but also on those roots that were set up over two decades ago. Reggie and company have boasted Wii to include the most launch titles in history with Wii supporting not only GameCube, but N64, SNES, Genesis, TurboGrafx-16 and the original NES games in Nintendo's new download service. For that reason, we here at IGN believe a rebirth of retro gaming is in order, and we present to you Retro Remix.

Each edition of Retro Remix will offer a title from one of the systems, including information on that game as well as a ranking that depicts whether or not you can expect to see it as part of the Wii's Virtual Console. The idea here isn't to feature all 4,000 Mario titles or take a look at every first-party Nintendo product that is sure to grace the system at launch. This is a chance for gamers to get in touch with the unsung legends that may have been forgotten over the years.

Since Nintendo has recently announced the partnership of SEGA Genesis and TurboGrafx-16 titles, we've reformatted the style of Retro Remix to accommodate all five systems. Each day of the week up until E3 will feature one headlining game. Five days in a week, five systems on the Virtual Console. Convenient, see?

Description: While we don't normally take the time to dwell on the obvious additions to the Virtual Console on Nintendo Wii, it seemed like a good time to celebrate one of the best games in the history if Nintendo's lifespan. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was flawless, timeless and absolutely the pinnacle of its era. Releasing in November of 1998, it was easily the must-have game during the Christmas season. What better could there really be? It was realistic, mature, deep and polished. Whether you're a fan of the Wind Waker design or not, you have to admit the appeal of a truly realistic vision of Hyrule.

In fact, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess will be the first Zelda title in nearly a decade to offer fans a true lifelike vision of the Hyrule universe. Ocarina of Time proved that the N64 was a gamers' system, and it gave fans a new love for the franchise. It is the only home console game to receive a perfect 10 score from us at IGN, and rightfully so. Aside from the obvious demand we have for it on the Virtual Console, Zelda can only be best described by the two guys who played it the most here at IGN: Peer Schneider and Matt Casamassina. Take it away guys:

Peer Schneider, Original Reviewer, 10/10: I have to confess that I'm a long time fan of the Zelda series. Ever since Link to the Past, I have been waiting for another adventure with the same sense of freedom and interactivity. Although games like Final Fantasy, Secret of Mana, and Metroid filled the void, I had to wait six years for Zelda's jump to a next generation console. The wait was very well worth it. Ocarina of Time is easily the best in the series. Sure, the game has a couple of little flaws (the annoying Navi "hey" messages, for example) -- but unlike the hundreds and hundreds of uninspired gaming sequels that find their way into console and PC owners' homes every year, Ocarina of Time takes some basic gameplay and story ideas from its predecessors and rolls them into a completely unique experience.

I don't know how many games I have played in my life where you see some cool scenery in the background and you're thinking "wow, wouldn't it be great if you could actually go there?" That's what Zelda is all about. You see something and you're thinking "wouldn't it be cool if you could..." -- and you can. The fighting system is fantastic, the new camera system unlike anything you have ever seen. Apart from a little slowdown and a few blurry textures here and there, the graphics are insanely beautiful. The sunsets and rain sequences, the projectile and smoke effects, everything is displayed in vibrant colors and with much attention to detail. Although the lack of the overworld theme is a bummer, the many returning Zelda melodies (such as the glissando announcing a secret or the fanfare when finding an item) and the moody dungeon scores are only outdone by the amazing surround ambient effects.

In the gameplay department, the gap between Nintendo's in-house development and third party titles becomes painfully clear. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time should be recommended playing for ever aspiring videogame designer and programmer out there. If you're making games and you haven't played this game, then you're like a director who has never seen Citizen Kane or a musician who has never heard of Mozart. If you're a gamer looking for your next title to buy, then take it from me, this is as good as it's going to get for a looooong time.

A break-through title from Nintendo that deserves all the hype and praise it's gotten. The limited gold edition is just the icing on the cake. My highest possible recommendation.

Another Take: Matt Casamassina (from original review): Sometimes you play a game and you think to yourself, "You know. It would have been really cool if the game designers had implemented [x]. Or, what if it were possible to do [x]?"

And then there's Zelda.

It's a game that enables players to go anywhere and do just about anything in an immense 3D world. A world so vast that it takes literally minutes to walk across a tiny portion of it. It's huge. In fact, in the history of videogames, I've never played a piece of software that compares with Zelda's raw depth.

But there's much more to Zelda than size. Spanning a period of three years, Miyamoto and his 200-man development team had molded a game with so many details -- subtle and otherwise -- that it's almost mind-boggling. Zelda's fishing game, for example, is so well executed that it could have been released separately as a game of its own. There are tons of little extras like that, whether it be the title's endless secrets or enormous selection of characters, weapons, items, spells, and the like. And there's always something new. Trust me, the first time you ride the horse you'll be absolutely overjoyed. If your anything like me, you'll spend an hour just riding around Hyrule in awe. Everything, from Zelda's Z-trigger lock-on system to the game's in-game cut-scenes and well-balanced story advancement, is perfect. Zelda 64 is well worth the wait. It is a game that comes along once a decade; it's the crowning achievement of Nintendo 64's life-span. To sum things up, if you own a Nintendo 64 you must own Zelda. It's that simple. And if you don't own the system, Zelda is reason enough to make your purchase -- right now.

Well done Nintendo. Nobody does it better.

Will it make the cut? There's absolutely no doubting it. The Legend of Zelda is one of Nintendo's most prized franchises, and there is no way it would let this one slip by. Ocarina of Time will most certainly come out. The only real question is will Nintendo make it a launch title for gamers, or will it save the big guns for another time? In fact, even though we don't like to speculate on the idea of "upgrading" an older title on the Virtual Console, we can't think of a better game to do it with. New labyrinths? A slight graphical update? Bonus content? If they did it, Nintendo could expect the heads of gamers everywhere to literally explode. One thing's for sure, however: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time will definitely make an appearance on Wii.

Virtual Console Support Probability: Very High

We'll be featuring a new Retro Remix title every day until E3 2006, so be sure to check back tomorrow as we count the days until Nintendo's gaming revolution begins.